Several PhD scholars fail to get industry jobs after the completion of their PhD projects. Having spent years in research and thesis writing, you immediately realise that you should have worked hard in developing industrial-related skills instead of devoting too much time in thesis writing. Usually many PhD scholars face this problem as they are suggested that staying in academia is more important, but to some extent PhD scholars are also responsible for this. Here are the mistakes that you should not follow if you want to get an industry job.
Overly Emphasise on Thesis and Neglecting Experiments
No doubt your thesis should be excellently written, but it’s not a work of art. You should complete your thesis as quickly as you can. However, it should be done without compromising writing quality. No matter what your subject area is, you should complete your thesis within five weeks. You should write your thesis for five to six hours everyday, and rest time you should spend on experiments, developing skills, and establishing a network to apply for an industrial job.
Believing your publication values in real world
Publications are crucial for your academia, but it has nothing to do with industrial jobs. Hardly any manager emphasises on it, but this might be just a curiosity to know about your academic performance. Don’t think that you can get an industry job on the basis of your publications. This will never sweep even R&D managers off their feet. You should focus on collaborating with right people to achieve your goal of getting a job in industry instead.
Resumes don’t reflect your achievements
Your resume should highlight your achievements that recruiters are always keen to look for. Many PhD scholars draft resumes of four to five pages that talk about what they did in labs, but not achievements. Most resumes are scanned quickly by recruiters so you should write your CV in a way that can be easily scanned from top to bottom.
Inability to expand networks
Another biggest mistake that PhD scholars commit is they don’t expand networks. Without networking you can’t get an industry job though you are an excellent PhD scholar. Don’t be reluctant to reach out to industry professionals and contact them to know about jobs. The more network you expand, the more chances of getting an industry job. Just join groups to collaborate with recruiters and professionals.
Don’t attend networking events
Another mistake that you should not commit is working overtime in labs. Working in labs is good for your academic experience, but whenever you get opportunities to attend networking events you should not miss them. Maintain a balance between your thesis, experimenting, and networking. Attend seminars, conferences, job fairs as much as you can. You should talk to your advisors and supervisors about it and tell them the importance of these events. They can be strict with you, but they will never stop you attending networking events.